This handgun was used in 13 shootings, 1 armed robbery in Syracuse

Onondaga County District Attorney's OfficeThis is the Glock 9mm semi-automatic handgun that has been involved in 13 shootings and one armed robbery in Syracuse. It was taken off the streets in July 2009 with the arrest of Nathaniel Stewart III.
Syracuse, NY -- Police call the weapon “9 mm Number 1.”

Since 2003, the Glock pistol has been involved in 13 shootings and one armed robbery in Syracuse. Seven people suffered gunshot wounds and at least seven buildings and cars were left with bullet holes.

View full sizeHere is a graphic showing when and where the gun was used in 14 crimes in Syracuse. Click the link above to see the full-size graphic.
Twelve incidents — 11 of them shootings — occurred in a one-year period from July 2008 through July 2009.

“9 mm Number 1” was taken off the streets in July when a Syracuse man was charged in a street robbery.

That gunman, 23-year-old Nathaniel Stewart III, was sentenced Nov. 16 in Onondaga County Court to four years in state prison for second-degree robbery. A second city man, Labradford Smith, was sentenced last month to five years in prison for possessing the gun in one of the earlier shootings that injured a victim.

“We believe this was a community gun used by a gang that Labradford Smith was a part of,” Assistant District Attorney Kari Armstrong said. “We can’t say that Nathaniel Stewart was a part of that gang. But this gun came from that community.”

Police reports in the Smith case identify the gang as the Bricktown street gang. Armstrong said authorities do not know where the gun was kept between shootings.

Authorities have not charged Stewart or Smith in any of the other incidents. Armstrong cited grand jury secrecy in declining further comment. But she said authorities had evidence Stewart and Smith associated with each other.

For more than a year, authorities have been tracking the use of weapons in the city based on the forensic evidence recovered from shots-fired calls and gun-related assaults, according to police spokesman Sgt. Tom Connellan.

The purpose, he said, is to determine a pattern of a weapon’s use to get it off the streets and to link up unsolved crimes.

“This gun definitely has one of the longest trails we have followed so far,” Connellan said of the Glock.

Spent casings from the gun first turned up on city streets in April and August 2003 as police investigated shots fired calls. Connellan said officials are considering those incidents separate from the more recent spate of the gun’s use because of the five-year gap before the weapon surfaced again in a July 2008 shooting.

Dick Blume / The Post-StandardNathaniel Stewart listens to judge Anthony Aloi in Onondaga County Court Nov. 16 during his sentencing for using a handgun in a robbery. The handgun was used in 13 other incidents. Next to him is his lawyer Aurora Flores.
Stewart pleaded guilty last month to two counts of second-degree robbery after Onondaga County Judge Anthony Aloi promised him a sentence of four years in state prison. Armstrong said the prosecution wanted a nine-year sentence.

The charges stemmed from an incident in which then 20-year-old Emmet Fullins was robbed at gunpoint by two suspects as he walked in the 1300 block of South State Street about 4:15 a.m. July 12.

“I don’t want to hear nothing, give me what you got, give me your money, everything,” Fullins quoted one of the suspects as saying as the handgun was pointed at him. The victim handed over a New York Yankees hat, a gold $1 coin and a Jesus head medallion on a silver chain.

The gunman, however, wasn’t satisfied.

“I like those sneakers, take them off,” Fullins quoted the suspect. The victim took off his sneakers and handed them over to the gunman who threw them across the street and warned Fullins “don’t cut through this block anymore,” according to court papers.

Police responding to the robbery call, spotted and chased two suspects. Stewart was taken into custody after running into the home at 140 Angelou Terrace and the Glock, serial number BKM300, was recovered from a closet just inside the door, police reported.

Although the prosecution cited the lengthy history of the gun’s use in asking Aloi for a nine-year state prison sentence, the judge said the prosecution had not provided any documentation that Stewart was involved in any prior incidents with the weapon.

Connellan said Chief Gary Miguel was “disappointed” that a gunpoint robbery was not being punished more harshly.

Smith, the only other person prosecuted in connection with “9 mm Number 1,” was charged before the weapon was recovered.

Smith, then 18, was charged in February with second-degree assault, second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and second-degree criminal use of a firearm in a shooting that occurred in the 1800 block of South Avenue Sept. 26, 2008.

Police reports indicate a couple of witnesses reported the gunman and his companions shouted “Word to L” before shots were fired. Authorities said officers were told that referred to a person’s status as a Pioneer Homes, “PH” or “Bricks” gang member.

Police reported Smith is a known member of the “Bricktown” street gang. The targets of the shooting were identified by police as members of the “1500” gang.

The victim, 19-year-old Brandon Williams, suffered a gunshot wound to the right calf but refused to cooperate with police or prosecutors. So Smith was tried only on the charge of possessing the weapon which had been recovered by the time his case went to trial.

Smith, now 19, was convicted as charged but proclaimed his innocence as he was sentenced by state Supreme Court Justice John Brunetti Oct. 14 to five years in state prison.

Armstrong had asked for a 10-year sentence to send a strong message to the community. Defense lawyer Frank Scibilia noted the prosecution had offered a deal 11 days before trial calling for a one-year sentence and youthful offender treatment. Brunetti wouldn’t agree to that, forcing the case to trial.

Scibilia also said the gun had been used a number of times after Smith had been arrested and was in jail.

“We have this one gun that was used in a number of different incidents,” Armstrong said. “It is a menace to this community.”